BulletproofAngel
by Narwhale
Summary: Cloud knows he's crazy, but even he knows the various dreams and reoccurring memories of his mother are nothing more than that- just a memory. Post FFVII. Currently on Hiatus.
1. The Secret Choir

The young blonde child slowly opened the front door, scanning around the room to check for any signs of movement. The living room was lit dimly with the faint lights glowing from the lamps that hung on the walls, the small flames from the fire place making the shadows in the room dance vibrantly among the still furniture and flower vases, the window reflecting the dim lights of the fireplace even under the cover of nighttime. After making sure the coast was clear, he walked inside, quietly shutting the front door as he trudged silently through the front room, hoping to get to his bedroom unnoticed.

"Cloud Strife!" He rolled his eyes at the mention of his name. He knew better than slipping past by _her_.

"Hi, mom," he mumbled.

"Where have you been, young man?"

A tall woman walked into the room from the kitchen to the right. She had the same hair color and almost the same hair style as the child did, wearing a white apron and orange dress. She glared at him with blue eyes, the same as his, and hands on her hips. She was clearly angry.

"Do you even realize how late it is?" the woman scolded him. "You were supposed to be back an hour ago!"

Cloud remained silent. He kept his eyes on the floor, not wanting to look at her.

"Do you have ears?" she continued. "Can you hear me? I asked you where have you been?"

"Nowhere," Cloud finally spoke in a low tone.

"Then why did you come back so late?" she asked.

"It doesn't matter," Cloud grumbled.

"It _does _matter, young man," she said. "I told you to be back by 7 PM, and its five past 8. Why do you keep going out so late and why do you keep up with this new selfish attitude of yours?"

Cloud turned his head away from her, but didn't intend on having his mother see the reason why he had returned so late. She then realized and stared at the side of his face for a moment before starting, sighing heavily.

* * *

"You got into another fight, didn't you?" she asked him in a sympathetic tone.

Cloud tried to cover his cheeks, but she had already saw the wound on his face and his dirty clothes. She wondered why she didn't see it first as soon as he had walked in.

"Come on." She took Cloud by the hand and walked him to the bathroom. She sat Cloud on the toilet stall and pulled out a cotton ball, dipping it with rubbing alcohol.

"This will sting a little," she told him.

She carefully rubbed the cotton ball on his wound. Cloud cringed at the slight sting of the alcohol, but remained unflinching as he felt the cold, wet cotton applied to his cheek. All the while, he continued to avoid looking at his mother.

"Where else?" she asked Cloud. He remained silent.

"Where _else_?" she asked again, but more forcefully.

Cloud turned his hands toward her, revealing the blood on his knuckles. She dabbed more alcohol on the ball and cleaned the wounds on his hands. After, she pulled out a small pink bottle of ointment and applied it to Cloud's wounds.

"You need to stop doing this, Cloud," she told him gently. "This is the third time this week, but you look worse than before."

"I can't help it, mom," Cloud explained. "That Eddy guy is-."

"_Eddy?_" his mother exclaimed. "Cloud, hun, I told you to avoid him if he keeps picking on you."

"I know that," Cloud said. "But he started it, kept calling me Chocobo head and-."

"I don't care if he started it or not," she interrupted, "Fighting with him or anybody is bad. Cloud, this is getting out of hands. I don't know why you keep getting into trouble with all these kids."

"It's because they're immature and stupid."

"And that gives you a reason to pick fights with them?"

Cloud became silent as he watched his mom wrap the bandages around his hands.

"Cloud, just because they call you names and pick on you doesn't mean that you must hit them to the point your knuckles bleed out," she said. "Before all this, you were nice and quiet. What's gotten into you?"

Cloud didn't answer. He didn't dare look at her even as she leaned close to his face to cover the cheek wound with a band aid. He knew why he kept fighting with the kids, why he had given his mother so much grief in the past few days. Ever since the accident at Mt. Nibel with Tifa Lockhart, he kept blaming himself for not being strong enough to protect her. The other villagers and the children blamed him, as well, and as a result, he grew angry and fought with the other kids because he saw them as immature. He told himself that he was better than the rest of them, but deep down, he knew he was only trying to hide his own weakness.

"There," his mother finally said. "Now, I don't want to see you fight another kid and end up with me having to patch you up, okay?"

Cloud nodded, but kept silent as he tried to stand up and walk out of the bathroom, but his mother stopped him.

"Cloud, hun, I'm serious," she said to him. "Ever since Tifa fell, you been acting this way, and its gotten worse."

She picked at his spiky hair, brushing off various dirt specks that she had missed before.

"You never fully told me what happened that day- you didn't you tell anyone at all, for that matter, but I know that what happened was not your fault."

Cloud didn't say a word as he kept his head lowered, avoiding her look.

"Sweetie, you know that no matter what happens, no matter what you do, I'm still your mother. And that means that I will be there for you no matter what. So don't get into any more fights with the other kids, okay? I know it must be hard to make friends with them, especially when they keep blaming you for what happened to that Tifa girl. But you know what the secret is?"

Cloud raised his head and gave her a curious look.

"What's that?"

She smiled at him, gently putting her hand over the band aid over his cheek.

"It's called love. When you learn to love, you have a long heart, a big heart. And with love, you learn to deal with the hate of this world. If you must fight, dear, fight hate with love."

Cloud raised his eyebrows at her. "I don't get it."

She continued to smile at him. "I know you don't, but someday when you're older, you will. And I know that you'll grow up into a strong, handsome man who will be full of love."

She stood up and walked out of the bathroom, but Cloud stopped her.

"What's love, mom?" Cloud asked her.

She stopped in front of the door way. Cloud looked as she turned around and spoke, but she did not utter a word, or even a sound. Suddenly, everything became still, almost as if he became deaf. He tried to call to her, but he couldn't even make out the words. Cloud kept trying to call, even screaming for her, but it was futile. And then everything became blinding white as his mother and everything else around him disappeared from his sights.

* * *

Cloud shot his eyes open, breathing heavily as he broke into sweat. He sat up from the sleeping bag he laid in, rubbing the temples on his head, not noticing the sun had begun to peek over the horizon in the far distant. Since he was the delivery man for Strife Delivery Service, he ran lots of errands outside of Edge, the city built among the ruins of Midgar. Many times when running his errands, he would chose sleep outside for the peace. Even after stopping Sephiroth and Meteor, even after being cured of his Geostigma, even after stopping Deepground, even though Tifa, Marlene and Denzel still waited for him back at the 7th Heaven Bar, he still isolated himself from his friends.

Cloud was still shaken at the dream that had awoken him. He sighed heavily as he stared at Fenrir, his bike, next to him.

_Just a dream_, Cloud thought to himself.

Yet, in the back of his mind, he questioned himself. The dream felt so real, so close, as if it had actually happened to him before. He had only faint memories of her, ambiguously recalling what she was actually like. Yet, it was the first time he had recalled her ever since everything happened. Cloud continued to sit, quietly watching the sun as it began to peek over the horizon until the sky was brightly lit. He packed his things, started Fenrir and rode back to Edge. The entire time, he kept thinking about the dream, wondering if it had actually happened to him.


	2. Middle of the Street

The loud knocking on his office door interrupted Reeve's work. He sighed heavily, rubbing his temples in frustration.

"Yes?" he called out, not facing the door.

The door swung open as Reno entered into his office. It had only been recently and under much stress that Rufus Shinra, the former president, and the Turks had officially allied themselves with the World Regenesis Organization, not that they hadn't been working together in the first place.

"Ah, Reno," Reeve said, surprised to see the Turk show up to his office, despite his laziness. "What brings you here?"

"Check this out, yo," the red head said as he dropped a stack of papers on Reeve's desk.

"That's another two hundred cases filed under Section 1-4-D."

"Disturbance of peace?" Reeve asked, looking at Reno. "Again?"

"More of them are coming in everyday," Reno said. "And it's the same thing; some nut jobs calling themselves 'The Guren Metals' are going around preaching about free energy, trying to rally people to join their cause, or whatever. They've also been reported for looting and break-ins, much like any other criminal on the street, but they're claimed to be more organized. It's really bugging everyone. Even me, yo! The stacks of paper I have to deal with, I mean."

"Probably another group of extremists," Reeve sighed. "These days, people are desperate. After all that has happened with Shinra and the Planet, a lot of things are going on. The WRO can only handle so much. Still, this does raise some issues."

"What kind of issues, exactly?" Reno asked as he sat in a chair, propped his feet on Reeve's desk, pulling out a plush ball and playing with it.

"Well, as former employees of Shinra, you and I both know that the only free source of energy that our company and the entire world ran on was Mako. However, that energy had to be extracted through the use of Mako reactors. So, how would these extremists be able to offer free Mako to the general public without any means or resources to get it in the first place, not to mention the dangers behind it?"

"Dunno," Reno said, showing little interest in Reeve's statement as he continued to play with the ball.

"That's not the only issue," Reeve continued. "As we now know, Mako is also the lifeblood of this Planet, or as some would call it, 'The Lifestream'. We all found out about the consequences of using it for energy. So, why would they want to endanger the Planet again?"

"Who knows," Reno said, unenthusiastically.

"Reno, are you even paying attention?" Reeve asked.

"Who cares," Reno said.

Reeve sighed heavily, shaking his head.

"I see why Tseng and Rufus never bother dealing with you."

"They do bother dealing with me," Reno said. "That's why they sent me here to your office."

"My point is," Reeve continued, "if people are sending in these statements about these 'Guren Metal' people, then clearly something is instigating."

Reno then dropped the ball and looked at Reeve, grinning widely.

"What are you suggesting, Mr. Tuesti?"

Reeve sat back in his chair, scratching his rugged beard.

"As much as I'd like to keep things like this on a low profile, I'm thinking you should talk to Rufus about this. The Turks have always been known for gathering intelligence for Shinra, not helping with construction projects and public safety like the WRO. Separated and doing their own thing, if you will. So, if allowed, if Rufus gives the go, then please find out who this 'Guren Metal' group is, and what they're trying to accomplish."

At that moment, Reno stood up in excitement, fist pumping the air.

"Reeve, you are a good man, after all!" he shouted. "You know how boring it is working here? Finally, we're given an assignment! A real one!"

He then shot out the door, yelling like a maniac as he ran down the halls. A WRO guard poked his head inside Reeve's office, confused and shocked.

"Sir, is everything okay?" he asked Reeve.

"Just fine, Lesher," he replied. "The Turks are just doing what the Turks do best."

"I didn't mean to eavesdrop on your conversation," the guard said, "but who is the 'Guren Metal'?"

"No need to apologize," Reeve said. "The office walls here were bought cheap since most of our resources was used in that highway construction around Rural Piedmont in Edge. It's easy to hear everything through these walls. But now that you bring that topic up, I want you to start sending out a warrant for 'Guren Metal'. There are enough crimes and criminal gangs as it is, and the last thing we need are extremists trying to change the world according to their perspectives."

* * *

Cloud gazed at the blade that marked the grave of an ally, a friend who he had much to thank for. It was the same blade that had been used by both him and his friend, and stood outside the grey city of Edge, underneath the ruins of Midgar. It was the first time in months that he had visited the grave marker, and he always stood there, silent, reflecting on his past and all that had happened; the defeat of Sephiroth and Jenova, the destruction of Shinra, the death of many close friends, including the one who stood in front of him now, and the girl he had met in the church. Cloud always lamented, buried himself in his guilt. Even after forgiving himself and opening his heart, even after knowing he wasn't alone and that he still had friends, he still held on to his regret, knowing that he could never truly be free.

_When you learn to love, you have a long heart, a big heart. And with love, you learn to deal with the hate of this world. If you must fight, fight hate with love._

Cloud kept remembering those words. Even though it was a dream, it kept coming back to him, almost taunting him.

_Did that ever happen between me and her? _He thought to himself.

He isolated himself in solitude, as well, due to his frustrations of his past, which he was unable to remember clearly. Everything was vague to him. Even after falling into the lifestream in Mideel and regaining his memories with Tifa's help, he only remembered certain details and events, not his entire past life. The dream was too much to bear, and he knew he had to talk to someone about before it drove him insane. There was one person who he knew he could turn to. He stood in silence, gazing over the horizon where Edge laid, then walking back towards Fenrir. Starting the bike, he set for his destination; 7th Heaven.

* * *

Cloud had arrived at Yellow Market during the busy hours of Edge's traffic, so there was a long delay. Cloud sat patiently for everything to start moving again. He noticed that despite the damage and the crisis the world had faced, the populace was flourishing fast. The people on the streets were busy as ever, running about with their errands, doing their small part to rebuild the world they had almost lost. He saw the people shopping around the local markets, constructing houses and roads, even conversing with each other. The people had grown much since the past events occurred, and it made Cloud hopeful.

Then finally, the traffic started moving, and Cloud rode off at a leisure pace. As he rode on towards an intersection, he noticed the crowds of people waiting for the traffic to clear so that they could cross. Then finally, Cloud saw in the crowd a familiar face- a tall woman wearing a white apron over an orange dress. She had blue eyes and blonde hair in a spiky fashion, almost similar to his. In fact, her face almost resembled him, and she was staring right at him! Cloud was in disbelief at the sight of the woman in the crowd.

"Mom?"

His mind was racing with questions. He couldn't understand what was happening to him at the moment. He knew there was no way it could have been her, as he had witnessed her death more than nine years ago. He knew there was no way she would still be alive today. Yet, there she was, standing in the street amongst the crowd, staring right at him!

But Cloud became oblivious to the vehicle in front of him that had stopped suddenly. He couldn't react in time. Glass and pieces of metal flew everywhere as Cloud was flung into the street. He could hear screaming tires, a domino effect of cars wrecking, people shouting in terror. He could feel the rush of the wind through his hair, the throbbing pain in his body as he plummeted to the concrete. He could only think of Marlene, Denzel and Tifa if they had found out what had just happened to him, and the woman in the crowd that looked almost exactly like _her. _He could not make out all that had happened as he quickly closed his eyes.

* * *

"Cloud, dinner!" she called out to him from the kitchen, wearing her usual orange dress with the white apron. "I made stew! It's your favorite!"

The young blonde child ran into the kitchen, leaping into the closest seat around the table.

"My, someone is hungry!" she laughed.

"You make the best stew, mom," Cloud said as he grabbed a fork, inspecting it.

"I'm glad you think so," she said, smiling.

She then saw the band aid on his cheek and the bonds wrapped around both his hands.

"How are you feeling?" she asked him.

Cloud gave her a curious look, a look as if last night had never happened. "Huh? I feel fine. Why?"

"Your wounds don't hurt?" she asked again.

"No, it feels okay," Cloud said.

But she continued to stare at Cloud, her mind filled with emotions. Cloud simply shrugged at her.

"Mom, really, I'm okay. It doesn't hurt anymore."

But she knew it wasn't his wounds that bothered her. She grew concerned for Cloud's mentality and how he was at the moment, always getting into fights. He seemed normal to her now, but she feared for his safety.

"Okay," she said, resuming her smile.

She lifted the pot over to the table and carefully served Cloud her specialty stew.

"Here you are," she said to him. "And don't forget to give thanks to Minerva."

"Mom," Cloud groaned.

"Sweetie, it's not me you should thank for the food and our house, but the Planet itself. I've told you that everything is the way it is because of it. You, me, and everyone else is here because we had been given life by the Planet."

"That sounds so stupid," Cloud complained. "Can't we just eat now?"

"It's not stupid," she explained. "It's the truth. You may not understand it now, but sooner or later, you will, and you'll thank me for it, young man. Now, close your eyes and let's give thanks."

Cloud groaned heavily, rolling his eyes, but she ignored him as she closed her eyes. But before she could begin, there was a knock on the front door.

"Who could that be?" she asked herself. "Stay here, Cloud."

Cloud watched her leave the kitchen. He heard her open the front door and could hear the conversations from the other room.

"Mr. Rosch. What a pleasant surprise."

"Hello, Mrs. Strife. Is your son home?"

"Why? What's wrong?"

"Ma'am, you know what happened between him and my son, Eddy, last night?"

"I'm aware of that, sir, and I have disciplined Cloud appropriately for his actions. I'm sorry for what happened, but your son should know better than to pick on him."

"Mrs. Strife, that son of yours is nothing but trouble. He's the one that got Mr. Lockhart's daughter into that accident."

"I don't care what he did. You and everyone else in Nibelheim keep blaming my son for something he didn't do."

"You know damn well it was his fault! You need to learn to better control that troubled son of yours!"

"Don't you dare say that about Cloud! Get out of my house!"

"If he starts trouble again, you're to blame, Mrs. Strife."

"Out!"

Cloud gritted his teeth as he held his tears back. He could feel the anger inside of him, feel the hatred of the other villagers. As he stood up and was about to leave, his mother appeared into the kitchen, wiping her eye with a tissue.

"Cloud, hun, where are you going?" she asked him.

"Anywhere but here!" Cloud yelled, finally letting the tears out. "No one wants me here, any way!"

"Oh, no you don't," she scolded him. "Sit back in your chair, Cloud. We still have dinner to eat."

"I don't wanna eat!" he shouted. "I wanna leave! I hate this place! I hate everyone!"

He ran past her and upstairs to his room, slamming the door shut. Cloud covered his head in his pillow and sobbed quietly. But as he lay down, he could hear her downstairs, crying even louder than he was. He felt angry for the people who shunned him, and he felt guilty for making his own mother cry, which made him cry even harder until he finally cried himself to sleep.


	3. You're Bulletproof

"He's moving! He's still alive!"

"Hey, get a medic here!"

"Step back, everyone! Give him some air!"

"Sir, are you okay? Can you hear me?"

Cloud could hear the deafening crowds of people around him, almost as if he were shell shocked, as he began to stir. The first thing he felt was the aching pain throughout his body, mainly in his head and upper torso. He felt the hard concrete of the ground and shards of glass beneath him.

Cloud slowly lifted his eye lids, looked up and saw a middle aged man, slightly larger than he was, wearing a burgundy colored scrub, closely inspecting him. His face seemed weary, yet ambitious, with grey streaks of hair in his dirty blonde hair combed back. He appeared to be a paramedic of some sort as he continued inspecting Cloud.

"Sir, are you hurt?" he asked. "Can you still move?"

"I'm… okay," Cloud stuttered as he sat up, still dazed and confused. "Just give me a moment."

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, looking at Cloud skeptically. "A normal person could never survive what you just went through. You're lucky to have survived with just scrapes and bruises."

Cloud examined himself and saw that the man was right; there were a few blood scrapes on his arms, his leather gloves had torn in several spots on his palm, a small wound had opened on the side of his temple, letting a small stream of red slip on his cheek. His body still ached, but Cloud saw that he wasn't seriously injured.

"I'm fine," Cloud said again.

"Yeah, you look fine," the man said sarcastically. "Regardless, you're still going to the hospital. It's my job as a paramedic to make sure you get checked up, even if you only have minor injuries."

Cloud ignored the man's statements and looked past the crowd, seeing multiple vehicles stacked on each other in a heaping pile, other paramedics helping the injured, though everyone seemed okay, as they all were complaining about the accident. Fernir was amongst the wreckage, and was completely totaled. Cloud cursed at his luck, frustrated that he had just lost his only means of transportation and wondered how it all happened when he suddenly remembered _her_.

"The woman!" Cloud exclaimed. "Where is she?"

The paramedic looked at Cloud. "Who?"

Cloud began to grow frantic. "She was right here, looking at me! She was standing in the street, and-and I saw her, and I thought it was her, but-."

"Sir, calm down," the paramedic said. "I'm not sure who you're talking about, but just take it easy, okay?"

Cloud scanned the crowd, trying to discern which one was the woman he had seen before the accident. He continued looking, but it was futile. He shook his head in disbelief. He didn't know whether it was really her or not.

_There's no way it was her, _Cloud thought. _Am I just seeing things now? First, the dream, which may or may not have been a memory, and now this. What's going on?_

"Sir?" the paramedic spoke to Cloud again.

He looked up to the man, bewildered and dazed.

"Sorry," Cloud said, shaking the thought of her out of his mind. "I'm just feeling a little nauseous."

The man nodded. "Well, let's get you treated as soon as we can."

He then pulled out a small bottle containing a green liquid. Cloud recognized it as a tonic, as he had purchased several hundred of those throughout his journey years ago.

"Take this," the man said, handing it to Cloud. "It should cure any pain you have in your body- at least temporarily."

Cloud accepted the tonic, downing it in one gulp. Just a small dose of the green liquid slightly rejuvenated his mind, calming his nerves and easing his tension. The throbbing pain had also subsided.

"Better?" the man asked, smiling. Cloud nodded his head.

"Great. Now, let's get a stretcher and take you to the ambulance, where we'll take you to a professional doctor-."

"I'm okay, thanks," Cloud interrupted as he stood up, though his legs were slightly shaking.

"Sir, you know I can't allow you to just walk away," the man said, trying to stop him.

"How many times must I say it? I'm fine."

"It doesn't matter. Minor injuries or not, you can't leave until you're checked up, otherwise you'll end up hurt again and it'll end up having me patching you up."

_End up having me patching you up._

Those words struck Cloud in his thoughts, and he remembered the conversation from his dream.

"Sir?" the man asked.

"Sorry," Cloud said, coming back to reality. "I was just thinking about something, that's all."

"Well, let's get you-."

* * *

Before the paramedic could finish his sentence, the sound of another vehicle wrecking filled the scene. Everyone looked towards the direction and they saw it; a semi truck plowing through the wreckage of cars. The crowd scattered to avoid the oncoming truck, fleeing for their lives and screaming in terror, barely dodging it as it swerved into a nearby building and causing an explosion to go off, the inferno engulfing everything that stood around it. Cloud could not believe what he had just witnessed.

"The hell was that?" the paramedic asked.

"Stay here," Cloud said to him as he quickly stood up and ran toward Fenrir.

"Hey, wait!" he shouted after Cloud, but the blonde had left him behind.

Cloud arrived at Fenrir, or what remained of it, quickly opening the slots on its side and pulling out the base blade of his Fusion Swords, and ran towards where the semi had crashed into the building.

After making his way through the smoke and the terrorized crowd, he arrived at the fiery scene, seeing several people injured on the ground near the blazing inferno. Cloud ran to the nearest person, a young woman, and helped her to stand on her feet.

"Can you walk?" Cloud asked her.

"I-I think so," she stuttered.

"Try. You need to get out of here," he told her.

Then, Cloud noticed amongst the blazing flames a shadowed figure of a man running away from the scene. At that moment, Cloud knew he had his suspect.

"Hey!"

Cloud quickly turned around at the mention of someone calling to him, and saw the same middle aged man, the paramedic.

"I thought I told you to stay," Cloud said.

"Idiot, I'm the one who should be telling you that," he said to Cloud as he ran up to him. "It's my job to help people."

"Well, help these people, then," Cloud said as he handed the woman over to the man, then taking off after the shadowed man.

"Wait!" the paramedic tried to stop Cloud, but he was too late again.

"Stubborn kid…"

* * *

Keeping his blade strapped to his back, Cloud gave pursuit of the shadowed man. He made his way through a long alley and found himself at a busy intersection with multiple cars speeding past him. Just then, Cloud saw him; the shadowed man just right across the other side. Cloud knew this was his only chance to catch up with him.

Cloud focused for a moment before leaping into the middle of the road. The cars slammed on their breaks, tires screeching and horns going off, but Cloud evaded the oncoming cars as he quickly made his way across the road and onto the other side.

Cloud continued his pursuit, pushing various bystanders aside as he ran down the streets. They cussed him out, but Cloud ignored them as he continued, nearly catching up to the shadowed man. But the agile suspect had caught sight of his pursuer, and quickly made a dash into a building on the left.

He followed inside, and found himself in a tailor shop, with racks of clothes and other fabrics on display. Cloud knew he could be hiding anywhere amongst the shoppers or in the clothes.

"Hello, welcome to Sonata Tailoring!" an elderly woman greeted Cloud.

He ignored her as he walked through the store, carefully examining his surroundings. Every shopper in there seemed oblivious to the situation or even the sword on his back. Cloud continued to check every corner, every display he could see. Slowly, he walked, listening carefully, eyes peeled and watching everything.

And then he saw a rack with mounds of clothes fall on him. Cloud quickly recovered and saw the shadowed man dashing through the back door. Cloud gave pursuit again, running through another alleyway. The shadowed man threw trashcans and various objects on the side towards Cloud to distract him, but it did little to slow him down.

He then stopped in his track and faced Cloud head on, throwing a right fist at Cloud. He evaded the attack, but could not react in time to dodge the high jump kick the shadowed man delivered before entering a nearby door of an apartment complex. Cloud quickly got up and followed after inside the building, and saw the shadowed man had ran up a set of stairs. He began running up the stairs, trying to catch up to the suspect. The chase soon led him to the top of the roof, just in time to see the shadowed man jump onto the roof of the next building. Cloud followed after, jumping onto the next roof, and had finally cornered the shadowed man.

* * *

"This chase has gone too far," Cloud said as he drew his sword. "Give up while you can."

Cloud saw the shadowed man turn to confront him, and he clearly saw him this time- only it wasn't a he. The shadowed 'man' removed his hood, revealing to be a young woman with white hair and pale eyes, adorned with a slender black attire and wearing glasses. She appeared exhausted, but was ready to fight.

"You caused that explosion, didn't you?" Cloud asked her.

The white haired woman remained silent, her fist clenched tightly.

"Why did you do that?" Cloud continued. "What do you gain from accomplishing such an act?"

"Orders are orders," the woman finally spoke.

"Orders from who?" Cloud asked.

"Like I would tell the likes of you!"

She then drew a compact submachine gun from underneath her coat, firing on Cloud. He quickly took cover behind a ventilation shaft, and waited until the firing ceased, and then broke cover. Cloud took the opportunity to attack, but the woman had quickly dodged. He couldn't land a blow as she continued to avoid his attacks, and in an instant, she got behind him and delivered a jump kick that seemed to knock Cloud out.

"Pathetic," she sneered.

She then walked up to Cloud's body, raising a boot to deliver the final blow to his face. However, Cloud had played possum, and quickly grabbed her leg, throwing her to the ground and breaking her glasses. She quickly stood back up, but Cloud saw that she had lost her vision. Cloud used the opportunity to get behind her and hit her behind the head with the hilt of his blade, instantly knocking her out.

"Pathetic," Cloud mocked.

* * *

He was unsure of what to do with the woman. He had to find out what her motive was, and what she meant by 'orders'. Cloud picked her unconscious body up and found a way off the rooftops through a fire escape. As he reached the bottom, he saw the same middle aged paramedic appear.

"Sir, do you realize how much I had to go through just to get to you?!" he shouted at Cloud.

"How did you find me?" Cloud asked, carefully laying the woman down.

"Tips from various bystanders," he replied. "I was able to have my colleagues help evacuate the injured before chasing you down."

He then noticed the unconscious woman beside Cloud.

"Who's that?" he pointed.

"I believe she's a suspect," Cloud said. "She ran off from the scene, and tired to confront me with this."

Cloud then took out the submachine gun from the woman and showed it to the paramedic.

"Goodness…"

The man then pulled out his PHS. "It's best we take her into proper custody, then. I'll call the WRO, they can handle this kind of job."

Cloud then felt a sharp on the side of his rib. He hadn't noticed until now that the woman had actually hit him. Cloud collapsed and started to succumb to his wond. His hearing became impaired and he started to hyperventilate. He heard the paramedic man rush over to him, holding the wound on his side which was now covered in red. Cloud could barely make out what the paramedic said while talking on the PHS as he faded away.

"Got two wounded… north-west side of… Kurtis Yoshito of Edge Emergency Medical Service… situation critical… hey, stay awake with me… just hold on, help is on the…"

* * *

Cloud sat, watching a group of kids kick a soccer ball around through his bedroom window. He hated them, hated how they acted, hated the way they play. Yet somewhere in the back of his mind, he felt lonely, felt like he didn't have a friend in the world.

"Cloud?" he heard her voice through his door as she knocked. "Cloud, are you in there?"

He turned around to answer. "Yeah, mom."

"Cloud, why are you in here?" she asked as she entered. "It's a nice day outside today. Shouldn't you be out playing?"

Cloud gave her a disapproving look, then turned back to face the window.

"Cloud, honey, I know you said that it wasn't easy getting along with the other kids, but you have to at least try."

Cloud shook his head. "What's the point? They all hate me."

"They don't hate you, dear," she said, trying to comfort him.

"It's not just the other kids, mom. It's everybody. Even Mr. Rosch hates me. He said so the other night. Remember?"

Cloud gripped tightly onto the mattress of his bed, clinching his teeth in anger and holding back his tears.

"I don't care that they hate me, though. I don't need to play with the kids, or speak to the other villagers. They all hate me."

"It doesn't matter, Cloud."

She then sat on the bed beside Cloud. "Do you remember what I told you?"

"Told me what?" Cloud asked.

"About learning to love."

Cloud looked at her, and she smiled back at him.

"No matter how much hate there is, learn to smile and learn to love. I know it's hard, sweetie, but if you open your heart, if you learn to love, then you will learn how to deal with hate."

Cloud cracked a smile. He tried to wipe his tears away, but couldn't hold it in. She then pulled Cloud into her arms, embracing him.

"This world will break even the strongest person down. The only way we can make it through is to let love in. Just know that no matter what, I'm still your mother, and I still love you."


End file.
